Indiana House Republicans have released their proposal to redraw the state’s Congressional district lines, including changes for Bartholomew County.
The proposed maps, released Tuesday, are part of the once-a-decade process of redrawing the political map and include some changes to a slice of southwestern Bartholomew County.
Under the proposed changes, all of Ohio, Jackson and Wayne Townships, as well as part of Sand Creek Township, in southwestern Bartholomew County would join Indiana’s Ninth Congressional District, which is currently represented by Republican Trey Hollingsworth, R-Ind. Right now, all of Bartholomew County is in the Sixth Congressional District.
The rest of Bartholomew County would remain in the Sixth Congressional District, which is represented by Rep. Greg Pence, R-Ind., a Columbus-native who has represented District 6 since 2019. He is the older brother of former Vice President and former Indiana Gov. Mike Pence.
Pence declined to comment on the proposed changes made to his district.
Under the newly proposed maps, Johnson County will be moved to District 6 for the second time since 2000. The last time the county was a part of the district was after the 2001 redistricting process, when the southern portions of the county were a part of the district. If the maps are approved, Johnson County’s new representative would be Pence.
Republicans, for their part, plan to move quickly to approve the new districts, with the House elections committee holding two days of public hearings Wednesday and Thursday followed by votes in the full House next week, The Associated Press reported. Proposed state Senate maps are set for release Sept. 21, with a final Senate vote expected Oct. 1.
Local election officials said they are “sitting tight” and waiting to see if the maps are approved, but are ready to make any changes that are approved.
“We have been assigned someone from the Indiana Election Division that will work with us in making those changes once they are approved,” said Bartholomew County Clerk Shari Lentz. “But they first have to be approved at the state level.”
Overall, about half of the counties currently in the Sixth Congressional District would be partially or completely moved to another district, according to the new Republican proposal. Jennings, Ripley, Dearborn, Ohio, Switzerland and Jefferson counties, as well as and the eastern half of Scott County, would become part of the Ninth Congressional District.
The newly proposed Sixth Congressional District would retain all of Henry, Wayne Union, Fayette, Rush, Shelby, Hancock counties, as well as most of Bartholomew County and the southern half of Randolph County, according to the proposal. In addition to Johnson County, a slice of southern Marion County would also join the Sixth Congressional District.
Besides a sliver of Bartholomew County, the Ninth Congressional District also would include all of Brown, Jackson, Jennings, Decatur, Monroe, Lawrence, Washington, Harrison, Floyd, Clark, Scott, Jefferson, Ripley, Switzerland, Ohio, Dearborn and Franklin counties, according to the proposal. Bartholomew County would be the only divided county in the Ninth District.
Bartholomew County Democratic Party Chair Steve Schoettmer said he would have preferred that the county not be split up into two districts, but said the GOP’s proposal to divide the county shows that they recognize that the county is “turning bluer.”
“I think the reason that (Indiana Republicans) are paying attention to Bartholomew County is because they realize that we are turning bluer,” Schoettmer said. “They’re afraid of that. …I think it put the fear of God in them, and it should have.”
Bartholomew County Republican Party Chair Luann Welmer did not respond to phone call seeking comment on the proposed redistricting plans.
In the Statehouse redistricting, District 73, currently represented by Rep. Steve Davisson, will now have a portion of Bartholomew County, after previously representing Washington, Jackson, Orange, Lawrence, Clark and Harrison counties. Under the proposal, District 73 would include the eastern half of Bartholomew County, as well as parts of Shelby, Decatur and Jennings counties.
Rep. Sean Eberhart, R-Shelbyville, currently represents District 57 including all of Shelby County, a portion of Bartholomew County and a small portion of southern Hancock County. Under the proposed maps, District 57 would be moved to the west — bypassing Shelby County entirely — and would now include extreme northwest Johnson County, extreme northeast Shelby County and extreme southeast Hendricks County.
The Indiana Senate redistricting maps are scheduled to be released next week, according to Republicans.
To view the maps, go to indianahouserepublicans.com/.
